CDS Global, the fulfillment company owned by Hearst Corporation, has purchased e-payment platform provider PayDQ. The acquisition broadens CDS’ electronic payment capabilities, providing it with a stronger cross-platform billing solution.
Terms of the deal were not released, but CDS CEO Malcolm Netburn says the company has targeted $15 million for digital capabilities expansion and the PayDQ deal is part of that capital investment.
Many consumers still prefer to pay their bills through snail mail, but companies are making a concerted push to move payments online, and increase customers’ digital payment options. Even in the digital age, CDS handles 500 million paper transactions each year. But with PayDQ, CDS gets a service that allows it to offer a collection of online payment capabilities in one place. "However a client wants to have their bills paid we want to be that go-to supplier," Netburn tells AD. "PayDQ provides a payment portal capability. For anyone that wants to deploy a payment portal digitally we now have the technology to accept, record and manage that payment process. This puts us in all of the digital payment touchpoints."
In other words, with PayDQ, CDS clients can have a payment portal that not only provides credit card and PayPal options, for example, but with this deal, direct bank account payments as well. "This will allow us to go right into the account as if the customer is writing a check," says Netburn. "PayDQ has all the hooks into the banking environment that will allow us to do this."
The deal also enables CDS to expand into markets outside of the publishing community. PayDQ comes with partners in the utility, insurance, finance and retail industries. And CDS has already identified the utilities, non-profit and fundraising markets as three to continue developing.
PayDQ will be fully integrated into CDS Global, assuming the parent company’s name.
